Last week was an emotional roller coaster. Something happened here that I am still coming to terms with, trying to process, and hoping to recover from . . . soon. It is an incredibly long story that has unfolded over the course of a few years and I am trying to think of a way to share it without all the lengthy details. I have referred to it before as an upcoming possibility, a life changing event. No one died. No divorce. Different than that. I had hoped to share a positive end result but that is not what happened.
I
hesitate to share though, since I prefer to keep things light and fluffy
here. Wouldn't we all just rather chuckle?
Well,
that was a cliff hanger if I ever saw one. And, no promise of a definite
"I will share this" in there. Hope we can still be friends even
though I have left you hanging, indefinitely. I might yet share it, just have not found the energy to write about it. Maybe that will help though.
In
light and fluffy news, (since that is going to distract me): On Monday, Reg
got braces in the little downtown area of a very high-end town near us. I
met up with a good friend, Jane, who lives in that neighborhood in a beautiful
home. She is a wonderful, down to earth person with a big heart.
Someone who knew what I was going through and was good enough to listen to the
latest drama and encourage me, offer support, suggestions, etc. This was right before things got ugly so I was still describing the pre-ugly stuff to her.
By
the time Reg's braces were done, Jane and I had walked and talked our way
through the beautiful town. I told Mini that night that she and I should
go there to walk. Mini's eyes almost bugged out of her head,
"YES!" Mini loves to ogle mansions.
Mini
is working a lot. Babysitting 4 or 5 days a week, and then caddying the
other two to three days. She can take a day off of caddying and sometimes
she does. Plus if something fun crops up, then I step in and handle the Tu/Thurs babysitting duties because it is happening in my house anyway (the dad works from home so Mini sits for that baby here). This schedule has meant that we have not walked together during
the summer months, the way we were during e-learning in the spring.
Mini
agreed to wake up a few hours before her 9 am sitting gig so we could drive 15
minutes to mansion-ville, walk, and drive home. Nothing interferes with this girl's sleep, so you know she was excited.
I walk fast. No question. Usually my mile walk is around 13.37 minutes - give or take. Mini was struggling to keep up even though she is taller than me and I was chugging along at 14.35 a mile. Then the ogling became dangerous. Just as I was scolding her for walking too fast, my 5'11" 16 year-old tripped. Long limbs a-flailing, she caught herself.
Mansion-ville is old, many houses have been torn down to make way for bigger and better homes. No comment here, OK - I will comment . . . I like the old, but anyway, the sidewalks are also old. Some are really messed up and guess what's hard? Ogling mansions and watching for messed up sidewalks.
Mini tripped AGAIN. I told her to watch her step. My grandpa was a nervous man, worry-wart type. He would make a little sound with his lip, like sucking air and then say a million times a minute: "Watch yourself Babe, ah, ah, watch yourself Babe." I can still see/hear him. He would not have survived this walk with Mini - she would've given him a heart attack.
Then finally Mini flew threw the air and skidded across the pavement. Ouch. She hopped up, with only the palm of her hand red and stinging. She said she was fine and then she turned away to laugh at herself.
I was also kicking myself: WHAT A BAD IDEA? THIS KID CANNOT HANDLE BEING DISTRACTED WHILE WALKING. Duh.
By the end of the walk I was walking far enough ahead, that I just called a warning over my shoulder when a tilted sidewalk was approaching. That seemed to work. Not exactly the mother/daughter feel-good walk I was going for though.
Jane and I introduced her daughter and Mini a few years ago - same age, different high schools, but they get along great. I told Jane that Mini and I were planning to walk in her neighborhood. She told me to let her know so that they could maybe walk with us.
Mini NEEDED to walk as soon as I presented the idea to her and it was too soon to meet up with Jane, short notice and all. But as I watched my kid trip her way along, I told her that I was glad we had taken this opportunity to practice walking, so she didn't embarrass herself in front of our friends.
I imitated her tripping along like a cartoon character alongside her polished, act-together friend who resides in the very neighborhood Mini was drooling over, and we both bust a gut laughing.
I was also kicking myself: WHAT A BAD IDEA? THIS KID CANNOT HANDLE BEING DISTRACTED WHILE WALKING. Duh.
By the end of the walk I was walking far enough ahead, that I just called a warning over my shoulder when a tilted sidewalk was approaching. That seemed to work. Not exactly the mother/daughter feel-good walk I was going for though.
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A couple of outstanding new homes. I told Mini I was taking a few pics for my blog and she wondered if I would mention her falling, hell yeah! |
Mini NEEDED to walk as soon as I presented the idea to her and it was too soon to meet up with Jane, short notice and all. But as I watched my kid trip her way along, I told her that I was glad we had taken this opportunity to practice walking, so she didn't embarrass herself in front of our friends.
I imitated her tripping along like a cartoon character alongside her polished, act-together friend who resides in the very neighborhood Mini was drooling over, and we both bust a gut laughing.
8 comments:
I get liking to keep things light because of what is going on in the world but I think we all can agree here that we need a distraction right now, so lay it on us sister. We can handle it. VENT AWAY. Get it out. :)
I love to mansion stalk too. When I visit John Hughes' grave (I can mention that here because it's no secret that I stalk his grave and it's not stalking I SWEAR), we always drive by all the mansions in that town and it is fun to try and guess what the people do for a living. Doctor? Lawyer? Michael Jordan? Those kinds of fun convos.
Also, I walk hella fast as well which is why I usually walk alone or with the dog. He never complains.
Kari - I am considering sharing, it is just a very heavy topic. I prefer to know how things will end up, and that is still uncertain. Plus, you all might disown me if I write the entire tale. I am thinking bullet points might be the way to go. Just the facts mam. The feelings will be implied anyway. :( If I do share, you will be completely shocked. As in thoroughly.
Some of those houses - whoa Nelly, they are something to look at. I have babysat in a handful of impressive abodes and it never fails to amaze me . . . how do they even afford to heat those places? Mini is a total lover of looking at houses and floor plans, etc. To the point of being dangerous.
Mini is taller than I am - how can she not keep up she has the legs of a giraffe?
I love the light and fluffy Ernie, but also appreciate the tougher topics. We’ve all got them and your writing this year has distracted me from some tough times. I was diagnosed with breast cancer in January, right before my 50th birthday and my epic family trip to New York. Because it was caught early through screening I was given a March operation date, which was later cancelled due to Covid. In the end I had the lump out in April and another op in May to take out some remaining pre cancer cells. Luckily it was caught so early I don’t need chemotherapy (hurray) and I’m finishing my radiotherapy treatment tomorrow. All my appointments I’ve had to go to on my own with no husband or family there to support me because of the virus, but I’m nearly through this. And you better believe I’ve got the champagne on ice for tomorrow night after my last appointment! Anyway..... all this to say it’s good to share tough times in a space where you feel comfortable and you have some lovely supportive readers who I know would join me in supporting you - not disowning!!
I can't believe you are leaving us hanging here. I'm gonna go on a whim and say that Coach is transitioning.
See what happens when you drop hints, but no details. If it makes you feel better writing about it, then do. We all love you light or dark.
I giggled about Minnie tripping over houses....:) I love to look at nice homes too, especially in older established neighborhoods. But damn, those sidewalks are what we in our home call ANKLE SNAPPERS!
I hope you guys have a nice weekend and that the heavy stuff isn't as heavy as I imagine it is. XO
Back when working in an office was a thing, I used to drive through one particular neighborhood to get to a Mexican restaurant that I love. I can say driving while ogling houses is NOT safe either.
Charlie - that is awful. I am so sorry that you had to go through this, especially now without family to escort you to appointments. Yikes. So glad that you caught it early. I appreciate your thoughts and I am mulling over how to share with everyone - there is a lot of technical stuff too, that could make the explaining hard. Thanks for the encouragement.
Suz - Busted out laughing at 'Coach transitioning' . . . at first I just thought the sentence was unfinished like 'Coach transitioning to a different work schedule.' I like ankle snappers - the terminology not the actual wacky ass sidewalks that need to be repaired. The heaviness of the horrible, awful has started to lift. In a nutshell: an emotional situation that had us stressed to the max was mishandled by some people when they behaved unprofessionally and a sad situation was made intense and unforgettably awful and people involved were hurt. I will work on a post to explain it all. *Sigh* Time heals, hopefully.
Gigi - Oh, a favorite Mexican restaurant sounds great right about now. I agree, driving while ogling houses is not advisable.
Not everything in life is light and fluffy, although you make light and fluffy a nice distraction from what’s heavy. Sometimes it’s nice to know other people have heavy things too, so feel free to vent to your internet friends here!
My mom and I love walking through model homes, especially the big ones! Lots of new build neighborhoods popping up around us, so lots of opportunities for oogling houses!
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